Saratoga County runway plan could be decided Monday

At present, the largest planes coming to Saratoga County Airport are the Bombardier Global Express along with the Gulfstream IV, V, 550 and 650 – all business-class jets – carrying passengers such as rock stars at Saratoga Performing Arts Center, high-roller racing fans and owners, and corporate executives for companies such as GlobalFoundries and Quad Graphics.
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BALLSTON SPA >> An overflow crowd is expected Monday for a meeting during which the fate of a proposed Saratoga County Airport runway extension could be decided.

Last month, an airport Technical Advisory Committee informally approved a proposal – contained in a draft airport master plan – for a 301-foot extension that would bring the facility’s main runway to 5,000 feet.

Proponents say the move would increase safety and allow some planes to take on more fuel, generating revenue for the airport’s operator and Saratoga County, in the form of more sales tax. However, an extension would displace some families and a hospice that leases a building from the county on Rowland Street. Other people’s properties might be subject to tree cutting.

“It’s a tough call,” said small plane pilot Mike Arnold of Schuylerville. “They need more runway for safety margin and so planes can land in bad weather instead of going somewhere else. But as a neighbor I might be concerned, too, because of planes coming so close to their house. Their concerns are warranted.”

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The county Buildings and Grounds Committee, chaired by Milton Supervisor Dan Lewza, who’s opposed to a runway extension, will meet at 3 p.m. Monday at the county supervisors’ board room in Ballston Spa. Recently, more than 230 people turned out for a public hearing during which the vast majority of attendees voiced opposition to a runway extension.

The issue has mobilized residents opposed to the proposal. Earlier this week, residents held two meetings to organize ways to protest an extension.

Lewza said Monday’s meeting will start with a presentation by McFarland Johnson, a consulting firm the county hired to prepare a mandatory 10-year airport master plan. The study, costing $375,000, is scheduled for completion this fall.

Full Board of Supervisors’ approval is required for projects contained in the completed master plan. A variety of upgrades, such as improved fueling facilities, are under consideration.

After hearing from McFarland Johnson, the committee will vote on whether to include recommendations for a runway extension in the completed master plan. The idea could die in committee depending on the vote’s outcome, Lewza said.

The public will be allowed to voice comments after the committee votes. If the panel defeats plans for a runway extension, a lengthy comment period won’t be needed, Lewza said.

Lewza declined comment about how he expects committee members to vote.

However, he added, “I’m looking forward to Monday.”

Even if a runway extension is defeated, the draft master plan calls for the county’s acquisition of two properties and easements on several others, which would allow for tree-cutting in future years if vegetation neighboring the airport gets too high. The Federal Aviation Administration advised such steps to make the airport conform to current design standards.

However, Lewza said he plans to recommend against including such provisions in the completed master plan, and that the airport should stay just the way it is.

“It’s a slippery slope when you start infringing on people’s private property,” he said.

Lewza said the county can offer fair-market value offers to neighboring property owners, but that it shouldn’t be allowed to take or gain easements to property, without neighbors’ consent.

Any upgrades called for in the completed master plan won’t take place until Federal Aviation Administration funding is secured, which could take several years.

At present, the largest planes coming to Saratoga County Airport are the Bombardier Global Express along with the Gulfstream IV, V, 550 and 650 – all business-class jets – carrying passengers such as rock stars at Saratoga Performing Arts Center, high-roller racing fans and owners, and corporate executives for companies such as GlobalFoundries and Quad Graphics.

However, the runway’s length limits the amount of fuel these aircraft may carry and the distances they can travel. A fully loaded Global Express could make fly to the West Coast, Asia or cross the Atlantic Ocean without stopping.

Floyd Bennett Memorial (Warren County) and Rutland-Southern Vermont Regional airports both have 5,000-foot runways now. Warren County officials are considering a plan to increase that county-owned facility’s main runway to 6,000 feet.

“Six thousand is the magic number for fuel,” said a pilot, requesting anonymity. “That’s where you can top off and get the full load for where you’re going.”

Pilots try to fill up whenever possible because take-offs and climbing to altitude requires the most fuel and is the most expensive part of any flight. So filling up saves money by not having to stop between appointed destinations.

Also, fuel sales makes money for the airport operator and local government in the form of sales tax. “That’s what it’s all about, money and business,” the anonymous pilot said.

However, it’s a source of heated opposition from Saratoga County Airport neighbors. “Don’t tell me you want to take my home because you want to sell more fuel,” said David Burton of Rowlands Hollow West.

North American Flight Services has a contract to operate and maintain Saratoga County Airport through April 2028. Manager John Zilka said many variables determine the amount of fuel that a plane carries such its size, the weather, temperature and number of passengers.

He said it’s difficult to gauge how much extra fuel each type of plane that uses the airport might carry if the runway is extended. The main reason for lengthening the runway is safety, he said.

“You’d go from a thin safety margin to one that’s acceptable,” Zilka said.

Columbia Air Services operates Rutland’s airport where the firm Cape Air makes three commuter flights daily to and from Boston.

“As far as I’m concerned, runway extensions are always a good thing,” said Bud Peer of Columbia Air. “It means extra business and increased safety. It will increase the chance of an aircraft coming in and taking on more fuel. A lot of times we get these bigger airplanes, but they leave light. They don’t take on fuel.”

With more room to stop, planes are also more apt to fly in during inclement weather when there’s a low ceiling, he said.

“In truth, if you’re already next to the airport, you’re not going to notice that much of a difference,” Peer said.

But the possibility of low-flying planes carrying extra fuel in bad weather is just the kind of thing Milton residents are upset about.

“We’re content with it as it is,” said Anita Harris of Kaatskill Way in Rowlands Hollow East. “Any more and it goes beyond tolerable.”